1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to an apparatus, method and system configured for dispensing liquid products to two or more appliances, and more particularly to an apparatus, method and system for aspirated dispensing of liquid products to two or more appliances using a single dispenser.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Many cleaning and sanitizing processes, whether laundering, warewashing or the like, have as a significant portion of their operating expense the cost of the equipment or the dispenser of the formulated aqueous products. For example, hospitality businesses such as hotels, hospitals, restaurants, and the like use multiple pieces of equipment or multiple dispensers for dispensing liquid detergents and cleaning solutions to multiple appliances for laundry and warewashing. These processes often use multiple chemicals to increase the effectiveness of the cleaning and sanitizing process. To achieve these objectives, many efforts have been made to minimize or reduce the equipment and associated costs for calibrating, controlling and measuring the dilution and delivery of concentrated liquid products to an appliance, and more specifically to a set of appliances. These dispensers vary from, on one hand, simply manually measuring and mixing to utilizing a computer-controlled dilution device. One common dispensing device combines, under mixing conditions, a flow of concentrate and then a flow of diluent. The flow of liquid diluent can be directed through an aspirator such that, as the diluent passes through the aspirator, a negative pressure arises inside the aspirator drawing the liquid concentrate into the aspirator to mix with the liquid diluent. Both Copeland, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,033,649 and Freeze, U.S. Pat. No. 4,817,825 and Mehus, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,915,592 disclose dispensers having aspirators for diluting liquid concentrates to deliver liquid products in this general way. Such aspirator-type dispensers have been used for diluting and dispensing a liquid concentrate.
In a number of applications, there is a desire to minimize equipment costs by using a single dispenser to supply multiple chemicals to multiple appliances. In the case of aspirated dispensing of multiple chemicals to multiple appliances, significant challenges exist, including the downstream distribution and handling of the chemicals in such a way so as to not impair or affect the aspirator's performance, yet still allow multiple chemicals to be fed to two or more appliances using a single aspirating dispenser.
The present invention addresses these problems and provides for an apparatus, method and system configured for dispensing liquid products to two or more appliances using a single aspirating dispenser.